


Almost Too Late

by thatcrazywriterley



Series: The Too Late Tales [1]
Category: AEW, All Elite Wrestling, Being The Elite (Web Series), Matt Jackson-Fandom, Nick Jackson-Fandom, Young Bucks-Fandom
Genre: Fluff and Angst, Interrupted Wedding, Multi, Polyamory, brothers share a wife, mutual? pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-05
Updated: 2020-04-05
Packaged: 2021-03-01 05:07:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,864
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23489554
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thatcrazywriterley/pseuds/thatcrazywriterley
Summary: Reader is ready to marry Matt Jackson. She's sure that she loves him, and wants to spend the rest of her life with him. But there's just one problem.She's also kind of in love with his brother, Nick.
Relationships: Matt Jackson/Reader, Matt Jackson/Reader/Nick Jackson, Nick Jackson/Reader
Series: The Too Late Tales [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1695274
Kudos: 7





	Almost Too Late

**Author's Note:**

> I might do a second part to this? Life after? And just so you know, no sibling stuff.

_(GIF owned by allelitewrestlings on Tumblr)_

You took a deep breath, giving yourself one last look in the mirror. You’d been cooped up in the suite for what felt like days, though it had only been a few hours. The room was filled with the soft buzz of noise of the women closest to you. Your sister was putting the last touches on your niece’s hair. Your mother carefully pinned a flower to the shoulder of her dress.

“I wish Daddy could have been here,” you said, smoothing imaginary wrinkles from the front of the satin gown. You fluffed the veil over your hair, fingers shaking with nerves.

“He would have loved this,” your sister replied. “And he would have loved Matt.”

_Matt_ , you thought, drawing a picture of him to your mind. You could remember the first time you saw him. He was all long dark hair, beard, sunglasses and smiles. His smile. That was what you fell in love with first. The way that it came so easy and lingered. The smile that he reserved just for you.

_Yeah, Daddy would have liked Matt Jackson. He’d have liked Nick, too._

Your heart skipped a beat in your chest at the thought of the younger Jackson. It hadn’t taken you long to realize that where one went, the other followed. The early days of your relationship with Matt had always included Nick. So much so that your sister had even asked if you were somehow dating both of them. You laughed it off, insisting that Nick was just part of a package deal when it came to his brother.

The longer it went on… the more it became awkward and confusing. It was hard _not_ to like Nick. He laughed easy and was one of the most affectionate people you’d ever met. Where Matt wasn’t much for public displays of affection, Nick didn’t mind hugging, cuddling, and even kissing his friends. You’d seen him enough with Omega and the rest of the Elite to know that much. There were a handful of times you could remember on the road with them, waking up wedged between Matt and Nick. And almost every time, Nick had his arms draped over you.

No one ever mentioned it, but you didn’t think anyone forgot about it either.

But that was something to think about at a different time. You had to focus on today—the day that you walked down the aisle and said _I do_ and became Mrs. Matt Jackson. The thought made your stomach drop a little.

_It’s what I want_ , you thought to yourself firmly.

***

Nick paced the hallway not far from your suite. He’d been psyching himself up all morning. God knew, he loved his brother more than anything in the world. Matt was his best friend, his travel buddy, his tag team partner. They’d gone everywhere—shared everything—together.

But this was the one thing they couldn’t share.

His chest ached as if someone had reached between his ribs and squeezed his heart in a vice. It was like his lungs had been popped. He couldn’t catch his breath. He couldn’t see a way out of the predicament he found himself in.

In half an hour, he would be walking you down the aisle. Matt had asked him to be his Best Man and, since you didn’t have any other close male relatives, you’d asked him to do the honors. He could taste the bile working its way up his throat at the thought of taking that walk with you, then giving you away to Matt. He couldn’t stand the idea of you belonging to his brother. Not when he loved you so much he hated himself for it.

***

It was time. For an instant, you couldn’t breathe. The reality of it all hit you with a sudden clarity that you wished had been there before. You know that Nick waited for you on the other side of that door. That he would be beside you for the long walk from your suite to the ballroom. God, you thought you were going to be sick.

“Ready?” your mother asked softly. As if she could see the terror in your heart, she took your hand and squeezed it gently. “It’s okay to be scared. It’s a big thing, marriage. Y/N, if you aren’t sure… if you aren’t sure that Matt is the one, it’s okay to call this off.”

You thought about telling your mother the truth. That you loved Matt, that he really was your best friend, that marrying him was the future you saw for yourself. That, even though you knew it was wrong, you were somehow also in love with Nick.

And that, God help you, it broke your heart to have to pick.

“It’s okay, Mama,” you mumbled quietly. _It’s the only way_ , you told yourself, _it’s the only way that I can keep both of them._

The knock on the door drew you out of your own thoughts. Your sister pulled it open, niece clasped by the hand, to reveal Nick waiting on the other side for you. He cleaned up well. His hair was tied back in a looped ponytail, and he wore a suit with a bright blue tie and matching handkerchief in his jacket pocket. When he looked at you, his blue eyes were bright and glassy.

He looked like he was about to cry at the sight of you.

“Are you ready?” Nick queried, suddenly looking anywhere but _at_ you. He held his hands in front of him, fingers laced together and clasping one another tight.

You couldn’t speak. All you could do was nod. And even that was almost too much. Your heart pounded in your chest. Heat flushed over your skin as you struggled to keep yourself steady. _I love Matt_ , you repeated over and over in your head. _I really do. I love him._

***

Nick thought he was going to stop breathing when he saw you standing there in your champagne colored gown. His gaze swept over you from head to toe, taking in the way your hair curled against your neck and the dress hugged every curve of your body. That hand around his heart squeezed hard as he wished that you were wearing that gown for him. That he would be the one to take it off you at the end of the night.

_She’s Matt’s wife_ , Nick thought. _Or she will be soon. She’s always been Matt’s._

He took a deep, shuddering breath and forced a smile. He held out his arm, stiffening when you rested your palm on the crook of his elbow. Matt was waiting.

And he trusted his brother to bring you safely to the altar.

***

You counted the steps to distract yourself. Nick walked along beside you, the warmth of his body seeping through his clothes and into you. You could smell his cologne. You could hear the pop of the gum he was chewing. For a moment, you wanted to laugh. You wanted to ask him if he intended on keeping it the whole ceremony, but you stopped the words before they could reach your tongue.

“You look beautiful by the way, Y/N,” he said after a long silence. His voice was deep with sincerity, and you knew he was giving you that _look_. The look that was part appraising, part appreciation, and part desperation.

An ache started in your chest. You wished he hadn’t said anything. It was already hard enough to go through with this. Why did he have to make it harder by saying sweet things and looking at you like you hung the stars?

Why did you have to love him?

***

Matt stood at the front of the ballroom, at the end of an aisle made of flower petals and ribbon studded chairs. He bounced on the balls of his feet as he waited, adjusting his tie and picking imagined lint from his jacket. His dark eyes stayed trained on the door. _Any moment now_ , he breathed.

There was a moment of quiet, an instant of heavy expectation as the background music stopped. Then it picked up again—not the wedding march, something more modern—and the doors swung open. You stood next to Nick, hand wrapped around his elbow, and looked down the long aisle that separated you from your future husband.

Matt beamed. You could see it from the doorway. He looked boyish and handsome in his suit. A heady sensation ran through you. It was love. Yes, you loved Matt Jackson. He made you smile, made you feel safe, made you want to be the best version of yourself. You’d chosen _him_. From the very beginning.

But a part of you worried at your heart. Part of you insisted that you’d never had a chance to choose. That it had been Matt _and_ Nick from the very beginning. They were always together, a packaged deal, and you had walked into it with open eyes. Of course, you and Matt had your moments of privacy. And while you never did anything inappropriate, you and Nick had just as many quiet times together.

Your heart dropped a few inches, pressing on your diaphragm, making it hard to take a breath. Grey haze slipped around the edge of your vision. For a few steps, Nick was the only thing keeping you upright.

Then you were there, right in front of a grinning Matt who took your hands and pulled you up to stand in front of him.

“Y/N… you look… beautiful,” Matt said softly. You could see the truth of it in his eyes. You could sense it in the way his thumbs brushed gentle circles on the back of your hands. “I’m a lucky man.”

You smiled, knowing deep in your heart that you _did_ love him. That you could see a future with him rolling out in front of you. He truly was your best friend, and life with him would be happy.

_And I can keep Nick_ , you thought traitorously.

The minister began the marriage service. He read from Corinthians and spoke of the solemn nature of a union before God. He looked to your assembled guests and charged them with the support of our relationship, that it was their duty to provide for you when you couldn’t provide for yourselves, to counsel you in need, to celebrate in times of joy.

Matt never looked away from you. His hand cupped your jaw, thumb stroking the line of your cheekbone. “I love you, Y/N,” he murmured, dark eyes shining. He sniffed as he clearly held back tears.

You open your mouth to respond, but the minister is speaking again, his voice suddenly stern. “If anyone here assembled has any reason as to why Y/F/N Y/L/N and Matthew Jackson should not be wed, speak now or forever hold your peace.”

Quiet. The only sound was rustling clothing. You waited, hopeful yet terrified. Matt squeezed your hands and smiled.

The minister drew a breath to continue.

“Wait.”

Your head snapped to the side. Matt’s hands fell from yours as he turned around. Turned to face his brother.

Nick stood a few steps away, his cheeks wet with freshly shed tears. He looked at you with so much longing in his eyes that it took your breath away. In that moment, Nick wore his heart on his sleeve, and you saw for the first time how much he loved you.

No… it wasn’t the first time. You’d seen glimpses of it before, but you’d pushed it away. You convinced yourself that you were seeing things, that Nick was just affectionate, that he looked at you like the sister you would soon be.

But there was no ignoring it now. Not when Nick was looking at you like that. Not when he turned his attention to his brother and looked as if he was brokenhearted.

“I’m sorry, Matt,” Nick said, his voice thick with emotion. “I didn’t mean to… I’m not trying to stop you. But I need you both to know that I love Y/N. I love her, and I’ve loved her this whole time."

Nick looked at you, swallowing hard. "I love you, Y/N. But I know you love Matt. And if you’re happy, that’s all I want.”

He stopped, silence settling on the ballroom. You felt the tears slipping down your cheeks. It was as if your feet had been glued to the spot. You couldn’t move… not toward Matt and not toward Nick. You felt stuck, caught between the two brothers, unable to choose one for fear of losing the other.

Matt took a deep breath and stepped toward Nick. Then, as if he’d thought better of himself, he turned back to the minister, who nodded. He reached out and took your hand, threading your fingers together. Looking out at your guests, he said, “Can you excuse us for just a moment?”

No one answered. They didn’t need to. Matt pulled you gently by the hand toward a side door that led into a nearby hallway. You weren’t surprised to find Nick following behind.

Once in the hallway, the three of you stood looking at one another awkwardly.

***

Nick stuck his hands in his pockets and leaned against the wall. “I’m sorry.”

“What for?” Matt asked, his voice soft and calm. He watched his brother with a quizzical expression.

The brothers looked at one another for a long moment, neither of them quite understanding what needed to be said. Nick didn’t know what to do. He could feel the both of you slipping away from him. He’d ruined everything good in his life by opening his big fat mouth. He could have stayed quiet, watched you marry his brother, and made himself survive by just loving you secretly. He could have kept you in his life somehow.

But now…

“You can’t really think that I didn’t know?” Matt said suddenly, his brows quirking up toward his hairline. Nick snapped his gaze toward his brother, surprise written in his features. “You’re on open book, Nick. Both of you are.”

You felt your almost husband’s eyes on you and looked up. Matt smiled at you like he always did. Like absolutely nothing had changed.

“Y/N, do you love me?” he queried, taking your hands in his.

“Yes. You know I do.” You said the words vehemently, meaning every syllable of them.

“Do you love me?” It was Nick who spoke this time. He stayed away, retreated a few steps back. His blue eyes were hopeful.

You looked from him to Matt and back again. Your voice was small but just as confident when you responded. “Yes.”

Matt turned to his brother and gestured him over. Nick joined the two of you hesitantly. His ribs hurt his chest was so tight. He waited for Matt to tell him off. He braced for the moment when he lost his brother because of his traitorous heart. When he lost _you_.

“You’re the two most important people in my life,” Matt stated slowly. He looked at Nick with sympathy. “We’ve done everything together, Nick. It’s always been the two of us, having each other’s backs. I can’t hate you or fault you for this. Y/N is easy to love.”

Nick looked as if he was about to cry. He sniffed and swallowed hard. He couldn’t understand Matt’s softheartedness or the way that he handled this revelation so smoothly. God knew he was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Matt turned his attention to you, smiling and brushing his fingers against your jaw and down the side of your neck. “Y/N, I’ve loved you since the second I saw you. You’ve been… you _are_ more than I could ever have asked for. I know you, just like I know my brother. The two of you…”

He stopped for a moment. _It’s strange,_ he thought, sorting through the solutions that ran through his mind. _But it doesn’t matter. If it’s what they want… if it’s what_ we _want… it keeps us all together…_

“The two of you would have been honorable about all this. You’d keep your distance and be unhappy, but neither of you would go behind my back.” Matt let go of one of your hands and glanced at his brother, waiting for him to take it. “If you love each other… Y/N, if you love me… we can make this work. The three of us.”

Nick felt like he’d been struck. There was a flood of relief that eased the pain in his chest. He watched Matt, incredulous at what he suggested.

“Are you saying we… _share_ Y/N?”

“I’m saying that we find a way to make all three of us happy. And make it so that we never lose each other.”

“Y/N?” Nick whispered your name softly. Matt rubbed circles on the back of your hand. Both of them watched you, waiting for your judgement.

You sigh softly and squeeze their hands gently. “Just don’t make me change my last name to Jackson-Jackson.”


End file.
